ISLAMABAD: On the directions of the government, the Pakistan Army has launched a comprehensive operation against foreign and local terrorists who are hiding in sanctuaries in North Waziristan Agency, a week after a brazen insurgent attack on the country's busiest airport in Karachi.

The operation has been named Zarb-e-Azb, said an Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) statement on Sunday.

Using North Waziristan as a base, these terrorists had waged a war against the state of Pakistan and had been disrupting our national life in all its dimensions, stunting our economic growth and causing enormous loss of life and property.

They had also paralysed life within the agency and had perpetually terrorised the entire peace loving and patriotic local population, the statement quoted DG ISPR Maj Gen Asim Bajwa as saying.

He said, Our valiant armed forces have been tasked to eliminate these terrorists regardless of hue and color, along with their sanctuaries.

With the support of the entire nation, and in coordination with other state institutions and Law Enforcement Agencies, these enemies of the state will be denied space anywhere across the country.

As always, armed forces of Pakistan will not hesitate in rendering any sacrifice for the motherland, it added.

The all important announcement came after overnight air strikes by Pakistani jets that killed more than 50 foreign militants, mostly Uzbeks, in North Waziristan.

Strikes took place in the Boya tehsil, Degan forests and Datta Khel tehsil of North Waziristan.

Local security officials put the death toll far higher, saying that about 150 militants died in the air strikes, which primarily targeted Uzbek fighters in a remote area of the tribal agency.

Among the dead were insurgents linked to last Monday's all-night siege of Karachi airport that killed 38 people, including 10 attackers, and all but destroyed a tentative peace process between the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the government.

Related: North Waziristan empties out as foreign fighters flee

Pressure has been mounting on the government to launch a ground offensive in the Taliban-infested North Waziristan tribal district.

Following the brazen assault in Karachi, the US carried out two drone strikes in North Waziristan on Wednesday, the first time the controversial programme has been used this year.

It may be mentioned that Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan had warned the government against launching a major military offensive against the militants in North Waziristan saying it would prove suicidal.

North Waziristan Agency has been isolated by deploying troops along its border with neighbouring agencies and Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) to block any movement of terrorists in and out of the Agency, said an ISPR statement issued on Sunday night.

“Within the Agency, troops have moved and cordoned off all terrorists bases, including in the town of Mirali and Miranshah.”

Briefing the media regarding “precise and targeted air strikes overnight,” it said that eight terrorist hideouts were destroyed in North Waziristan killing 105 terrorists, most of them Uzbek foreigners.

“Announcements will be made for local population to approach designated areas for their orderly and dignified evacuation out of the Agency,” said the ISPR statement.

Necessary Logistics and administrative arrangements for Internally Displaced People (IDPs) have been made by Political Administration and Disaster Management Agency, it said.

“Registration points and IDP camps have been made, as being announced by Civil Administration. Surrender points have also been made for those militants who chose to quit violence and give up their arms.”

Meanwhile, aerial surveillance of the area is being carried out by own aerial surveillance platforms, it added.

The Pakistan Army also said that Afghan security forces including Afghan National Army and Afghan Border Police have also been requested to seal the border on their side to facilitate elimination of terrorists who attempt to escape across the border.

They have also been requested to initiate immediate measures to eliminate Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) terrorists and their sanctuaries in Kunar, Nuristan and other areas of Afghanistan.

All my family's duhas are for our PAKFAUJ. Allah give theim strengh and courage for defending our country and all citizens, Allah give the force, courage and strenght for the battle they will fight for our securities, we as Pakistanis living in Pakistan or living abroad, for the security of the world. The world know their sacrifice, but do not recognize it. No problem ! We, proud Pakistanis recognize their sacrifice, we recognize the sacrifice of their famillies. We know that for sure !

Alhamdulilah.... Real men are deciding brave and straight to the point actions!

Im happy to know that the new general is a man, not an enuch as the former gen kiyani who was a passive idiot, as even his own distant family members disliked him for doing nothing.
Theyre supporting the new general who is active, thinks about his country and hates taking orders from anti Pakistan elements, enemies and interests.

May Allah Support Pak Armed Forces, send the khawiriji dogs to hell and remove any anti Pakistan elements, interests and enemies within and outside Pakistan!

Name of the Operatoon in N Waziristan, Zarb e Azb is named after the Sword of Prophet Muhammad SAWS!

Pretty much inline with what I mentioned earlier. The army was already prepared and engineered a flash point to start this conflict with the blessing of the people and written instructions from the government.

I am assuming that Haqqani network and surrendering TTP units will be given safe haven while the army expels all other foreign and enemy units into Afghan territory. I am expecting Pak army to make hardened posts that will be along the entire border with artillery and combat aircraft.

I am assuming that this conflict will be over soon but Pak Army will deliberately show it as an active operation for a long time to fool the americans.

Once the US leaves, Pak armed forces will simply repeat what they did after Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan. This time the Northern Alliance will be prepared and will have the much needed support. This will be a very tough battle that Pakistan is about to engage in.

Anyhow, my best wishes to our armed forces and may Allah grant them victory over our enemies.

Hakim Bey: Don't just survive while waiting for someone's revolution to clear your head
Napoleon Bonaparte: The world suffers a lot, not because of the violence of bad people, but because of the silence of good people!

My prayers are with the pak forces. May they eliminate the khawariji dogs of hell and their local supporters.

Need to build a fence along the afghan border once this is done.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Everybody is entitled to my opinion!------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------"Some of you may die, but that's a sacrifice I am willing to make." -- Lord Farquaad, "Shrek"------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------`Terrorism is the war of the poor, and war is the terrorism of the rich.'------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------In times of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary idea! G.Orwell------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My prayers are with the pak forces. May they eliminate the khawariji dogs of hell and their local supporters.

Need to build a fence along the afghan border once this is done.

actually there are a number of places where fence cant be constructed due to terrain restrictions...! plus, as per our teachings, erecting an obstacle is not enough, this obstacle should always be visible to u and under ur weapon's fire so that u can see if someone tries to mess with it, again not always possible....!

Is it possible to fence with any kind of obstacle + censors linked to one or multiple control rooms + a dedicated units equipped with attack/transports helicopters ? What is your opinion about the way to check and control our boarders ?

Is it possible to fence with any kind of obstacle + censors linked to one or multiple control rooms + a dedicated units equipped with attack/transports helicopters ? What is your opinion about the way to check and control our boarders ?

Thanks.

PAK FAUJ ZINDABAD
Pakistan ZINDABAD

its simple, u dont need any fence, u should have ground sensors to detect any type of move, u shud also conduct regular flights of FLIR equipped aircraft and helis ( we already have both) to transmit real time imagery of the area (already being done in the operation), our surveillance drones can also be used for the same purpose, a control room can transmit the date to an already heli-mounted, already aloft QRF supported by gunships which can reach the point of incident in no time and spray everything in sight....

Thanks Panzer-kiel for your reply. I pray for all our Jawans risking their life for our safety.

I pray for all our Jawans who gave their life for us, and I pray Allah for the success of our ARMY.

PAKFAUJ ZINDABAD
Pakistan ZINDABAD

this will a looooooong fight, will spread outside of FATA, need of the hour is that every one braces for the counter-attacks.....just stay strong, it is during these times that the worth of a nation is explosed.....Gentlemen, lets show to the whole world that we are worthy of Prophet (PBUH) and sahaba, fight like Hazrat Khalid (Sword of Allah)....its time that we show to these TTP green $hit$ and to the whole word what we r really made of...

its simple, u dont need any fence, u should have ground sensors to detect any type of move, u shud also conduct regular flights of FLIR equipped aircraft and helis ( we already have both) to transmit real time imagery of the area (already being done in the operation), our surveillance drones can also be used for the same purpose, a control room can transmit the date to an already heli-mounted, already aloft QRF supported by gunships which can reach the point of incident in no time and spray everything in sight....

No politics plz... time to stand behind the forces and eliminate the khawariji forces for good... this will take many years... need to make military bases in waziristan+tribal areas esp along the afghan border.

The afghan government along with our own local extremist cockaroaches have been using that region as a safe haven for too long... the afghan governments long term plan is to dismember the fata area into ots own scope of influence/borders... they miscalculated pak forces capabilities. .. pak will have to make the daroud line a permanent closed off border... checkmate afghan paindoos.

The only problem is... this operation came ten years too late... should have done long ago... but pak didnt have the political resolve. ..

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Everybody is entitled to my opinion!------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------"Some of you may die, but that's a sacrifice I am willing to make." -- Lord Farquaad, "Shrek"------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------`Terrorism is the war of the poor, and war is the terrorism of the rich.'------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------In times of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary idea! G.Orwell------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

WASHINGTON — The top U.S. military commander in Afghanistan says the U.S. has increased its surveillance over the Afghan-Pakistani border since Pakistan began pounding a militant stronghold with airstrikes, but so far officials have not seen any militants fleeing the latest offensive.

Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford told The Associated Press in an interview that the U.S. was not coordinating military operations with Pakistan along the border, but officials have increased the amount of intelligence-sharing with the Afghans. He said the Afghan troops and U.S. forces in that region were ready for any effects of the strikes, including extremists seeking refuge in Afghanistan.

The U.S. has long pressed Pakistan to root out Taliban militants who have found safe haven in the lawless tribal region of North Waziristan, along the Afghan border, and used it as a staging area to launch attacks against Afghan and NATO forces in Afghanistan. Dunford said officials have seen Pakistani families crossing the border to escape the military airstrikes that have pounded the country’s northwest since Sunday.

“The Afghan forces as well as our forces are fully prepared to deal with the second-order effects of the Pakistani operations in North Waziristan,” Dunford said in an interview from Afghanistan. He added that officials were still trying to determine how many Pakistani families have fled into Afghanistan to escape the violence, but it was difficult because many relocate to families in the southeast and northeast.

More broadly, Dunford expressed increased confidence in the Afghan security forces, and said he did not believe that the military collapse playing out in Iraq would occur in Afghanistan once U.S. combat troops leave.

He said the U.S. fully expects to get a bilateral security agreement with Afghanistan’s government that will allow up to 14,000 U.S. and NATO troops to remain in the country next year to advise the Afghans and conduct counterterrorism missions. The U.S. left Iraq after the government in Baghdad refused to agree on a security arrangement.

“I don’t see, at least today, the divisive politics that obviously resulted in the situation in Iraq playing out here in Afghanistan,” said Dunford. “We’re encouraged by the fact that we will have a bilateral security agreement. I’m encouraged by the fact that we have multiethnic (presidential) tickets.”

Sunni militants are advancing across Iraq, taking control of several cities in the north and moving toward Baghdad, while roiling Sunni-Shiite ethnic tensions. In the face of the brutal al-Qaida-linked Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, some Iraqi security forces have fled.

The failure of the Iraqi troops to hold off the ISIL, just three years after American troops left the country after eight years or war, has led some U.S. leaders to question whether the same slide into chaos and insurgent control will happen in Afghanistan.

Dunford said that while Afghan military leaders at times expressed frustration with President Hamid Karzai, including his decisions to limit close air support missions or other partnered operations with NATO troops, “not once was there a hint that they wouldn’t follow his direction.”

Noting the deteriorating situation in Iraq, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said President Barack Obama was “about to make the same mistake in Afghanistan he made in Iraq.”

Asked what can be done to prevent that from happening, Dunford said the U.S. and NATO need a signed security agreement so they can continue to train and advise the Afghan security forces, and the next president “needs to have an inclusive government” and reach out to all the ethnic groups in the country.

He said there was less violence during Afghanistan’s runoff presidential election over the weekend than during the initial voting in April. And he added that, overall, the level of violence in Afghanistan this month is lower than the same time last year.

“What we’ve seen is that the Taliban have been unable, right now, to maintain any kind of momentum against the Afghan security forces,” said Dunford. “What’s remarkable about that is, number one, the Afghan forces are in the lead and not us. And, second, the Taliban indicated a very strong intent to disrupt the elections and to increase the level of violence prior to the elections, and we simply didn’t see any surge in violence.”

He added that there was growing divisiveness and frustration among the Taliban.

“We’ve seen some mistrust develop between the Taliban senior leadership and the rank-and-file fighters out in the provinces,” Dunford said. “I think the morale of Taliban fighters has been affected adversely as a result of the lack of success.”

The U.S. has announced it will leave about 9,800 troops in Afghanistan at the end of this year. Of those, 8,000 will train and advise the Afghans, and the rest would conduct counterterror operations. NATO countries will contribute another 4,000 or more troops.

PESHAWAR: About 30 suspected terrorists were killed in targeted strikes by jet aircraft in Khyber Agency and North Waziristan early Saturday, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a press release.

At 2 AM, aircraft destroyed two hideouts close to the Pak- Afghan border in Khyber Agency killing 10 suspected terrorists. At 5 AM, three hideouts were destroyed in Hassu Khel in North Waziristan, killing 20 terrorists.

All strikes were made in areas where there is no civil population, the statement said.

Over 300 suspected militants have reportedly been killed in the Zarb-i-Azb operation launched a week ago.

Earlier today:

Army to donate salary to IDPs
The Pakistan army on Saturday announced that it will donate one day's salary to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) of North Waziristan.

The ISPR spokesman made the announcement and said ration will also be donated to the displaced tribal people which will be enough to meet their needs for 30 days.

On the directives of the prime minister, the government decided to do away with the use of smart cards for the transfer of cash to IDPs of from North Waziristan.

PM house sources told dawn.com that all concerned agencies and departments have been directed to give cash relief to IDPs at check points.

Eight militants killed
Eight suspected militants were killed as jet fighters struck militant hideouts in the Koshali Torikhel and Zakar Khel villages of the Mir Tehsil in North Waziristan Agency Saturday morning as part of the ongoing Zarb-i-Azb operation.

Official sources said militant bases in Koshali Torikhel and Zakar Khel were hit, with two bases destroyed. They added that eight militants were also killed in the Saturday morning blitz.

While tribesmen have already left the Mir Ali tehsil, those staying behind to resist are militants or their supporters who are being chased and eliminated, a source told Dawn com.

The militants are mostly foreign fighters and those who harbour them, with some having fled to the thick forests in Shawal valley extending to South Waziristan Agency.

There are still some key resistance points where the fleeing militants have left some fighters who are planting mines to stop the advancement of security forces.

The Utmankhel Dawar and Wazir tribal elders have again pledged to flush out foreign fighters and assured the government that they will not allow these militants again in their areas.

3 killed, 6 injured in Khyber Agency strikes
As part of an earlier operation underway in parts of Fata, early Saturday strikes in Bara Malakdin Khel area of Khyber Agency killed three militants and injured six others.

Official sources said that the militants had occupied a government school in Malakdinkhel area of Bara which was targeted by the gunship helicopters in an attempt to destroy it.

A three-day curfew relaxation in North Waziristan ended on Friday and it is unclear if the relaxation would continue on Saturday.

According to a press release issued by the military on Friday, terrorist hideouts in Qutab Khel on the outskirts of Miramshah were destroyed.

Cobra gunships, artillery and snipers took coordinated action and 12 terrorists, including foreigners, were killed. A huge cache of arms and ammunition was also destroyed.

The ISPR said terrorists inside cordoned areas were making desperate attempts to flee. Six attempts were foiled last night.

Three locals who did not have any proof of identity were apprehended while trying to flee from the cordon.

The press release said that 24 suspects who were trying to flee in the garb of IDPs had been apprehended at various posts in Mirali and Miramshah.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Everybody is entitled to my opinion!------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------"Some of you may die, but that's a sacrifice I am willing to make." -- Lord Farquaad, "Shrek"------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------`Terrorism is the war of the poor, and war is the terrorism of the rich.'------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------In times of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary idea! G.Orwell------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PESHAWAR: An extension in curfew delayed a ground operation in North Waziristan, which was expected to be launched on Saturday.

The human dimension continued to aggravate as the number of registered displaced people swelled to over 300,000.

According to the ISPR, air strikes against militants have been extended to Khyber Agency. The ground offensive will begin as soon as the evacuation process is completed, an official told Dawn.

The military operation against militants in North Waziristan was launched on June 15 with air strikes on their hideouts. Security officials claimed that over 200 local and foreign militants had been killed in the bombings.

Fata Additional Chief Secretary Arbab Muhammad Arif said at a press briefing here that the curfew would be relaxed on Sunday to ensure evacuation of civilians. This is a big human tragedy, especially for those who have fled their homes for the sake of the country, he said.

The ISPR said 30 terrorists were killed in targeted strikes by jets in Khyber and North Waziristan Agencies in the small hours of Saturday.

Jets destroyed two hideouts close to the Afghan border in Khyber Agency, killing 10 terrorists, it said.

Three hideouts were destroyed in Hassu Khel area of North Waziristan, killing 20 terrorists.

However, the official claims could not be confirmed from independent sources.

The Fata Disaster Management Authority (FDMA) said 307,501 people, among them 132,973 children, had been registered at Saidgi checkpoint by Saturday afternoon.

Mobile teams of the National Database and Registration Authority have been deployed to provide computerised national identity cards to the displaced people.

A mass exodus from North Waziristan continued and thousands of displaced men, women and children were waiting in scorching heat on the Bannu-Miramshah road for security clearance. Security personnel give clearance to displaced people to cross into the settled area after verification.

On directives of the government, the FDMA began distribution of Rs7,000 grants for each displaced family on the spot. Another Rs5,000 is given to each family for buying non-food items.

Arbab Arif said the government machinery had been mobilised to facilitate the internally displaced persons (IDPs). He said 20 registration desks, four health mobile units backed by five ambulances and six mobile units of Nadra had been deployed at Saidgi post.

He said health workers were administering polio vaccine drops to children.

He said only 19 families had reached a relief camp in Bakakhel area of North Waziristan.

Distribution of ration

The World Food Programme (WFP) would begin distributing ration among IDPs on Sunday, sources said.

They said a humanitarian hub would be set up at the Bannu Sports Complex where IDPs would get food items, including oil and flour.

The sources said the WFP was distributing food supplements among around a million IDPs from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas living in and off camps. They said the number of humanitarian hubs would be increased, if required.

Earlier, officials had said that relief agencies would not be involved in the operation and the federal government had stopped them from seeking humanitarian assistance for fresh IDPs.

AFP adds: Civilians have fled into Bannu, Peshawar, Kohat and across the border into Afghanistan. The government-run childrens hospital in Bannu was overcrowded with children suffering from diarrhoea.

Due to lack of space in the hospital, up to five children were being accommodated in one bed. Some children lying outside the hospital were being treated with drip bags hanging from tree branches.

The military said all ranks of the army would donate one days pay and 30 days ration would also be provided for the people fleeing the offensive.

Published in Dawn, June 22nd, 2014

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Everybody is entitled to my opinion!------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------"Some of you may die, but that's a sacrifice I am willing to make." -- Lord Farquaad, "Shrek"------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------`Terrorism is the war of the poor, and war is the terrorism of the rich.'------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------In times of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary idea! G.Orwell------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PESHAWAR: “The decision to take whom and leave what behind was difficult,” says Khalil Wazir, the last man standing in his Dattakhel village of Miramshah.

He had been reluctant to leave because he cared for those, who could not get out during the three-day evacuation period. The elderly people were the ones whom he was worried about.

Children and women were just put in the trucks like chicken. Many people left behind their elderly parents since they could suffocate to death in the truck, Mr Wazir said while narrating his ordeal.

The residents of North Waziristan Agency who had to rush to get out of their troubled homeland left behind their cattle and stored grains, the year’s food supply. But the elderly people, who were unable to walk for long, faced much of the pain as they had to either separate from their children or bear the heat in the suffocating truck.

Mr Wazir, a social worker from North Waziristan, having a 120-member family, always sounded optimistic about the restoration of normalcy in the area. He is president of North Waziristan Action Committee, a welfare body having over 1,500 volunteers and blood donors to help ailing people. Till recently, he used to help others in need, but now he himself needs help.

He would squint at any suggestion to shift the family somewhere else, saying their departure from the area would create panic among the residents of Dattakhel village, a hamlet of around 80 houses. Finally he had to compromise with the situation.

He had never been so much demoralised in life as he feels now with the dislocation of his family from the native area. He decided to leave but unlike others first he arranged for his 60-year-old diabetic mother to safely go to Afghanistan with some relatives.

A driver of a mini truck charged him Rs80,000 to take his family from Miramshah to Bannu.

Leaving everything behind, Mr Wazir locked the main gate of his fortress like house and left Miramshah at about 1pm on Friday and arrived at Saidgi checkpost at 9:30am on Saturday. His family members spent sleepless night on the road.

“Many aged men and women are still there. They either can’t travel or stayed back for guarding properties and cattle or simply because they are too old and weak to travel,” said the traumatised Wazir.

He shifted his ailing mother to Afghanistan, but could not evacuate 10 lactating cows and other belongings because of logistic problems. Harvesting season has just ended and the granaries stocked with year’s food have been left behind. He knows in his heart that life is never going to be the same after this one tragedy is over.

Observers and some senior government officials have termed the current displacement a ‘human tragedy’. Military operations have resulted in wanton destruction in the tribal area.

The situation, after this ‘human Life will never be the same for Waziristan people tragedy’ is over, is what no one has tried to measure so far.

Before launching operation Zarb-i-Azeb on June 18, security forces had bombed Matchis Camp village near Miramshah on May 22. Officials claimed that several terrorists were killed in the action.

However, local and independent sources said that elderly people were killed in indiscriminate shelling. Some people, who had stayed at their homes for protection of properties, were apprehended, they claimed.

Security forces have an experience of battling militancy, spanning over a decade in Fata and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, as they carried out nine major operations against militants in the region. Two operations -- Sherdil in Bajaur Agency in 2008 and Rah-i-Nijat in South Waziristan Agency in 2009 -- had caused widespread collateral damage.

Army has been in North Waziristan since 2005, having huge network of human intelligence and aerial surveillance system. There are reports that militants have already left Miramshah, Mirali and surrounding areas before the launch of Zarb-i-Azb.

A senior official said that security forces might not face resistance in Miramshah and Mirali, which were hotbeds of local and foreign militants. Forest-covered Shawal mountains, adjacent to the Afghan border, are believed to be a sanctuary of militants.

Sources said that track record of security forces on the humanitarian side in militancy-affected areas of Fata was not satisfactory despite the fact that International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) arranged courses and workshops for military officers since the beginning of militancy in the region.

Over 60,000 houses of civilians have been damaged in the ongoing insurgency only in four tribal agencies of Fata. Many non-combatants have been killed in air strikes and shelling. Small bazaars had been dismantled. Officials of Fata Disaster Management Authority (FDMA) said that rehabilitation and reconstruction of private properties required approximately more than Rs35 billion in tribal areas.

Collateral damage can’t be averted in both internal and external conflicts. Attacks that are expected to cause collateral damage are not prohibited but the laws of armed conflict restrict indiscriminate attacks.

Widespread collateral damage occurs in the conflict when principle of proportionality is ignored. Under the law of the armed conflict, parties to an armed conflict must always distinguish between civilians and civilian objects, because civilian population enjoys immunity.

People of North Waziristan have already suffered a lot. Ruthless militants on the ground, retaliatory action by the security forces and US drones have turned Waziristan into a living hell. The people have lost self-esteem, perhaps even identity, in this elusive conflict. Yet it is not too late. The authorities can still win the hearts and minds of the people of North Waziristan Agency if principle of ‘proportionality’ is followed in Zarb-i-Azb.

This is the flag of Islam, for you cannot separate the Muslim league from Islam. Many people misunderstand us when we talk of Islam, particularly our Hindu friends. When we say this flag is the flag of Islam, they think that we are introducing religion into politics, A FACT OF WHICH WE ARE PROUD. Islam gives us a complete code. It is not only a religion, but it contains laws, philosophy and politics. It contains everything that matters to a man from morning to night. When we talk of Islam, we take it as an all embracing word.

- Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah (11th January 1938)

Let us go back to our holy book, the Quran. Let us revert to the Hadeeth and the the great traditions of Islam which have everything in them for our guidance if we correctly interpret them and follow our great Holy book, the Quran.

- Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah (6th March 1946)

"It is my strong belief, that there is no ideology which is more democratic, enlightened and progressive than Islam."

ISLAMABAD: Over 100 ulema from various schools of thought declared on Sunday Zarb-i-Azb, the military operation being carried out against terrorists and militants in North Waziristan Agency, as jihad.

The decree [fatwa] was issued after a meeting of religious scholars which was organised by the Sunni Ulema Board here on Sunday.

The decree referred Verse No 33 of Surah-i-Almaidah, which says: “Crushing of the attempts to disrupt peaceful atmosphere in a Muslim state is jihad.”

The decree said that the nation was bound to support the ongoing operation in North Waziristan Agency and according to Shariat the people opposing it were rebellious.

Nation is bound to support the NWA military operation

It said that the state had the right to deal rebels with an iron hand as the militants had murdered hundreds of innocent people and targeted schools, shrines, hospitals, etc. Islam, it added, did not allow individual jihad.

We were taking them out without mercy, then the anti-drones campaign started. We had them cornered in the SWAT offensive. Musharraf even after he left was repeating the same thing in media that these are terrorists and no peace talks should be held with them.

It was the PPP democratic govt. that let them run loose, so the military is not to be blamed.

Hakim Bey: Don't just survive while waiting for someone's revolution to clear your head
Napoleon Bonaparte: The world suffers a lot, not because of the violence of bad people, but because of the silence of good people!

We were taking them out without mercy, then the anti-drones campaign started. We had them cornered in the SWAT offensive. Musharraf even after he left was repeating the same thing in media that these are terrorists and no peace talks should be held with them.

It was the PPP democratic govt. that let them run loose, so the military is not to be blamed.

Hakim Bey: Don't just survive while waiting for someone's revolution to clear your head
Napoleon Bonaparte: The world suffers a lot, not because of the violence of bad people, but because of the silence of good people!

In normal progressive/cultured society we wouldn't even bother thinking about such ridiculous notions to tell us what is the morally right thing to do.

A few people on the source website itself poised this question that why do we need a fatwa just to convince us to do the right thing. And the answer was as it was expected.

This is Pakistan and this is the Pakistani society/culture. Jub tak religious twist na diya jaye kissi cheez ko this society will never accept it. Take the Red-Mosque operation as an example, the government was doing the right thing but they did not stoop to this fatwa baazi....however the other side did and this was one of the chief reason which changed the jahil public's opinion in favour of the terrorists.